Notes (9-28-17)
Reminders * Deal with party retcon while setting up battle (print handouts?) * Ask about level progression and power scaling Retcon: * Ado's book on the shadow demons was written by Canaith, a tiefling bard of considerable renown in the modern era and the owner of the Canaith Mandolin. * Tessera has temples to the following gods: Belenus, Manwe, Eadro, Talos (and his children), Nephthys, Celestian, Avandra, Ilmater, and Makar. * Chimera Battle * The chimera swoops down, and as it comes in for a landing you all react. Roll initiative! * As you all focus on the chimera, you hear a cackling "ha-HA!" from the left, and a dozen or more arrows streak towards the caravan from either side. You see a multitude of goblins, with dirty fronts and grasses woven into shoddy camouflage cloaks on their backs, crouched in the heather about 70 feet away, all raising shortbows. * (Perception 16+) One of the goblins has a staff instead of a bow, and is wearing metal armor instead of chitinous leather. The staff is raised to the sky, and a ruby glistens with light on its end. Chimera = main page |-|Goblin Boss = main page |-|Goblins = main page If the party should recover the staff, these are its statistics: The Caravan The caravan is led by Elminster Brocken, a halfling inheritor of a failing Adamantine mine. His fortune, or what is left of it, has been liquidized, and he is hoping to make enough coin to start fresh in Tiv. He is carrying about 1800 pounds of ore, which will condense down into 180 pounds of adamantine. The ore itself is worth 27,000 gp, and if refined would be worth 270,000 gp. Tiv The party will arrive through the Blackwater gate after making their way across the Sirynglain Delta, on the eastern side of Tiv. The road actually comes down from a hill, so they will get a good view of the city. "As you come to the top of this low hill, you get your first good look at the Jewel of the Bay - the sun, still rising behind you in the sky, glints off hundreds of thousands of rooftops, made of shingle, thatch, and plaster. Temples and estates gleam with gold, reflecting the sunlight brilliantly back in your direction. Many of the buildings seem to be built in the water themselves, and the amount of canals and harbors you can see makes the city appear to be floating in a large bay." "Minarets and towers rise from the city's center, which is built around a low hill, and at the top of this hill you see one structure built upon the highest point. It's two minarets rise to be the highest points in the city, and its central gold-plated dome is clearly visible. Those of you who have lived in this city for any length of time know this as the Temple of Radiance." "To the left of this, an island in the water also stands out, a spot of green and gold in the midst of dark blue waters. The island is ringed with a tall stone wall, and dominated by a keep that looks more like a palace than a fortress. The structure has fewer towers than most castles of its size, but its several layers are framed by trees and ivy, suggesting perhaps that its grounds are filled with gardens." "You can also see what can only be the central market of the city from here. All of the major streets in the city's center seem to converge on a central plaza, which is filled with tiny awnings and umbrellas of every color and dominated by a huge sprawling structure with many wings and branches." Entering the city: "As you approach the gates, you join a steady stream of people passing into the city, while people from inside also make their way out in a smaller stream. Farmers with laden mule-drawn carts, travelers dressed in foreign garb, priests and monks chatting to themselves, families with a single mule to share between them, people of every race, color, height, and culture that you have ever seen, and many that you have not. Not one of you looks strange in the midst of this crowd, and you are largely ignored as your caravan makes its way forwards. The guards (of which there are about 10 posted around the gate at ground level) approach the caravan before it reaches the city, and your group halts, stopping the flow of other carts and horses behind you. After a quick discussion the guard has with your halfling merchant friend, the guards make a cursory inspection of the carts. The process takes less than three minutes, after which you are allowed passage and you enter the city itself." In the city: "You are bombarded by sights, sounds, and smells - the city streets are thronged with people. You hear a horse's hooves but see not a horse, but a tall centaur, clothed in feathers and furs and carrying a huge longbow and a strangely shaped pack slung like a saddle on his back. As you move through the streets, you see tieflings and genasi, goliaths and half-orcs, even lizardmen and dragonborn. Humans, elves, and every shade of blood in-between wear garb in every color, with varying degrees of finery, some with veils covering their features, others with turbans or headbands for their hair. Halflings and gnomes keep to the sides of the street, or scurry through the crowd with surprising nimbleness. The occasional dwarf shoulders their way through the crowd. Your eyes dart upward in response to movement in your peripheral, and you see a cat-like humanoid with a long tail clinging to the bottom of a construction of wood and sails that looks rather like a bird's wings and tail, soaring above on some wind you do not feel in the streets. At one point as you move through the city, you get a clear view of what looks like a small, reddish-brown dragonborn about the size of a gnome darting through the crowd as well. Encounter: Have the party roll a perception check (DC 16, or a sleight-of-hand roll with a +5). A group of urchins pushes their way past you, arguing animatedly over something (three of them, plus a fourth - Rajeev, Kyla, Odell, Phrix). Phrix, a lean half-drow girl, silently attempts to cut the purse strings of (d6, 1) Thrym 2) Ozthus 3) Ado 4) Enialis 5) Ash 6) Ozthus). If stopped, she will drop the purse and the urchins will scatter, running away in the crowd with a stealth roll of 15 (or +5). The purse will be missing 1pp, 2gp, 1sp, and 1cp. The Temple of Radiance The party will see the huge doors, closed, but with a smaller inset door open. At this, two paladins of Belenus stand. People are coming in and out of the temple in a trickle. * "Welcome to the Temple of Radiance." * She/He looks at you oddly for a moment, before saying ''"The rose mosaic can be found in the shrine of Majere, in the West wing of the temple." * ''A bit coldly, and slightly offended. ''"I'm sorry, the Dawnseer does not leave her chambers, except for morning prayer atop the Sunspire. Please feel free to enjoy the rest of-----" ''they trail off, slackjawed, eyes widening. item drops to the floor from their hands. They stand there for a moment, seeming shaken, before looking up to meet your eyes again. ''"I'm sorry. Please, wait one moment," ''before they briskly walk to another lady passing nearby. (monk, older, wearing white and orange robes.) ** "Pardon, my lady, these visitors.... well, the Dawnseer, she... she wishes, to, see them, my lady." ** "The Dawnseer spoke to you??!" ** "Yes, my lady. In my head. She... she commands them to be brought to the dais." ** "........Go, gather the faithful. I shall bring the guests to her." * The woman approaches you, seeming much more composed now. ''"The Dawnseer is expecting you. Please, follow me." You go through the temple, making your way to the back of it. 'Blessing of the Dawn. '''Once per day (recharges at dawn), you may reroll one attack roll, damage roll, ability check, or saving throw, before or after the DM determines whether it would succeed or fail. You must use the new roll. Ozthus If Ozthus turns himself in, he will be taken to a guard post to be held for further questioning. He will there meet a captain of the Sun Guard (named Koria) who will question him about what he claims. If he mentions murder, she will eventually command that he be locked up and detained in the nearest jail for the day, and the following, while she inquires with the Arylide Praetorate as to his claim. While detained overnight, he will have a visit from Idastra, who offers to set him free for old times' sake. If he agrees, she will ask to catch up, take him to a safehouse. If he insists on staying and serving his time, she will say "Then, justice be served," in a sarcastic voice. "The Ozthus I knew would never have faced a crime out of a sense of honor... ''(quieter) ''May your sentence be merciful." Zanko If the party should find Zanko's Emporium, they will discover it is being run by Valerie, Zanko's daughter. She is not as charismatic as her father, but is no less polite or friendly, manning the shop from behind the counter. She is also an apprentice enchanter, specializing in permanent illusion magic. Category:Notes